Hotel Review: Hyatt Regency Santa Clara
With 501 guestrooms the Hyatt Regency Santa Clara is a large property. Connected to the Santa Clara Convention Center, it is also close to the San Jose Airport. I booked a Thursday night for around $100, about a month in advance. After arriving at the airport, I picked up a rental car and the drive to the airport took barely 10 minutes.
Shuttle service is not provided by the hotel, but self parking in their garage was free for overnight guests so I pulled in and looked for a spot. I noticed that there was an electric vehicle charging station right in the garage, which would make this an especially convenient location for those with that type of car.
The lobby was huge, with escalators and an interactive map.
I had been assigned a Regency Club King room on the top floor, and the check in host told me that the Club Lounge was located on the first floor when I wanted breakfast in the morning. During the weekend the Club Lounge is closed so guests that have Lounge access get coupons to use at the restaurant instead.
Just inside the room was a bathroom to the right. The sink was a bit unusual and the basin was too shallow.
There was plenty of counter space.
The amenities were by Kenet MD, and the always appreciated tube of toothpaste was there.
There was a shower/tub combo, and the spray came out around the edges of the showerhead.
The shower curtain was one of those super friendly kind, that acted like Cling wrap around my legs. I finally placed it outside of the tub even though that meant more water on the floor. I was surprised to find a shower curtain without even shower curtain rings, and it made the room feel a little cheap.
The small closet design was simple – no door. Great for hanging up regular clothing but poor if you happened to want to keep your clothing tucked away if having someone in the room.
The room was decorated in a palette of carefully neutral colors, with one bright red lamp. There was lots of great light in the room thanks to the large windows.
Desk space was great which would be great for spreading projects out on.
There were two outlets right on the desk that made charging electronics very easy.
There was a generic coffeemaker with assorted coffees.
The bottles of Aquafina were $4 each, which seemed high for Aquafina.
The ergonomic desk chair was cool. Great to sit and work in, and fun to swivel about.
The long wall looked bare without any pictures, and a small flat screen TV sat all by itself on a chest of drawers.
The bed had lots of fluffy pillows and a nice soft headboard.
The space seemed to have been designed efficiently.
An iHome docking station sat on the bedside table.
I had wanted to go check out the hotel’s heated saline pool but I was tired so I didn’t go back downstairs.
On the way down to breakfast the next morning I noticed a sign in the elevator advertising their lounge Happy Hour at Evolution Cafe & Bar. Click here to see their Fall 2014 menu.
I passed by the Cafe & Bar on the way to the lounge. Once good feature of the hotel was strong Wifi all over the hotel.
The lounge was clean and not very busy at all.
There was an assortment of cereal and oatmeal.
Some fixings for the oatmeal, meats and cheeses were nearby.
There were bagels and breads.
The yogurt parfait with fresh fruit looked good so I had one of those.
There were also bowls filled with fresh fruit.
This Santa Clara hotel was a larger property than I prefer and customer service didn’t really stand out, but at least I didn’t experience any noise issues. It could have been because I was there on a Thursday instead of a Friday night, or because I had a top floor room near the end of the hall. Â
I couldn’t recall seeing a Cafe & Bar with a happy hour before at another Hyatt Regency I’d been to which was neat. Plus, the drive from the airport was quick and I appreciated having free parking.
I didn’t like the open closet design though, nor the bathroom. The decor in the room may have been minimalist to as to avoid distraction, but it seemed bland. Overall this was an ok stay at a basic hotel but in the future I’d look around at other properties if staying in the area.
Hyatt Category 2. 8,000 points for a free night, or 4,000 points + $55 Cash & Points redemption.
